Philpott sees life in black and white

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His affinity with the colours and Collingwood was the reason he ended up at North Geelong back in 1987.

"I'm a Collingwood supporter and when they had to go and play interstate I felt like a lost sheep. At that stage I was only new to Geelong and had no loyalties," Philpott said.

"I was at a Barwon Bulldogs game and felt out of place. There was an old bloke there and I asked him if there was a club that wore black and white (in Geelong). He said, 'There is, but you wouldn't want to know about them ... they're rough as guts'. I thought that sounded just like my kind of club. So I went down there and never left."

Philpott's influence netted a huge turnaround in the club's fortunes.

The Magpies went from almost folding in 1987 to winning the 1988, 1990, 1992 and 1993 premierships. They were runners-up in 1991 and 1994.